


Drownin' You

by DiamondWings



Series: Bloom, Love [2]
Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: And an asshole at first, Angst and Fluff, Angst with a Happy Ending, Felix is Too Pure, Felix just loves the sea and knows no fear, Human Felix, Hyunjin is cursed, Hyunjin is pissed, M/M, Sailor Felix, Siren Hyunjin, mermaid au, siren au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-26
Updated: 2019-11-26
Packaged: 2021-02-25 04:07:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21570556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DiamondWings/pseuds/DiamondWings
Summary: A siren, trapped in the frigid depths of the sea for over two thousand years, and a sailor with a soul so bright, it’s blinding…
Relationships: Hwang Hyunjin & Lee Felix
Series: Bloom, Love [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1553968
Comments: 44
Kudos: 215





	Drownin' You

**Author's Note:**

> If you haven't read the prologue for this series yet, you should do so first. It's not important for this story as stand alone, but for the series as a whole, since it all ties together.

The first time Felix had been on a boat, he couldn’t even walk properly yet. In fact, he’d learned how to walk on a rocking fishing boat, if he remembered correctly – and maybe that was why he was able to keep his footing on his boat in the roughest of weathers out on the sea, but frequently stumbled over nothing on firm land; but that was neither here nor there.

In short, Felix was born for the life at sea, and there was hardly anything out here he hadn’t seen yet and that he didn’t know how to handle. He was of the firm belief that nothing he could encounter out here could truly shock him; what he hadn’t seen for himself, he had heard countless stories about and pieced together the best way to deal with it, too.

He wasn’t stupid, though, well aware that the sea was dangerous and could be treacherous, but still he couldn’t see the vast oceans as anything but an old friend. And if something went wrong and he got thrown off course into the middle of nowhere, he didn’t blame the sea or the storm or the currents, but only himself for not reading the signs correctly, and used it as a learning opportunity.

It wasn’t always easy to stick to that mindset, though. Especially not when you’d been out on sea for a whole four days when you’d planned for two, and still there was no shore in sight. He was starting to run low on food – which was bad enough – but the worst part was that he was starting to run low on water. The contraptions he built to filter fresh water out of sea water rendered too little, and if he didn’t find land soon, he would dry out like a fish in the sun, and that was a possibility he wasn’t all too fond of.

Again and again, he checked his instruments and his maps, but nothing made sense. His compass seemed broken, the needle spinning here and there without any apparent reason instead of indicating north to him, his radar showing obstacles where there were none, and his GPS was of no use altogether as it kept showing him nothing but his home coordinates, but not the ones where he was now. All he had to go by was the position of the sun, but that was of little help when he didn’t know where he was and might as well sail straight past any land even if he kept going in the gross direction land should be in. Without a way to locate his current position, even his most detailed maps were useless.

Giving up was not an option, but he decided to conserve energy and wait for the night. At least at night, he could use the stars to get a better idea of where he had ended up in and possibly correct his course.

And so, he laid down in the shade his little cabin provided and waited, waited for the sun to go down and the stars to come up, hoping no more of the clouds dotting the sky would roll in so he could have a clear view of the night sky.

Finally, the sun went down, and as soon as the first stars appeared, Felix’ gaze was fixed on the sky, measuring and calculating. The stars were bright that night, and the vaning moon that rose some time later illuminated the quiet sea around him in a ghostly light that would have been comforting if Felix wasn’t so hungry and thirsty. As it was, he had no time to contemplate the beauty around him, too preoccupied with trying to determine his current position to get himself out of his predicament.

With his attention fixed on the sky, he noticed it far too late that he was heading into danger; though to be fair, with his radar showing him nothing but made up obstacles where there was nothing and most likely showing nothing even if there was an obstacle, he could have been paying all the attention in the world and would still have ran into the same problem.

It was only when he felt the bow of his boat lift uncharacteristically while the whole vessel tilted starboard on its keel that he realized with a curse he must have hit a sandbank; though where that could have come from he had no idea.

Quickly, he unfastened a long pole from the side of his boat to try and understand what he’d hit underwater, and free himself again. To his horror, he found it wasn’t so much a sandbank, but probably a reef or rocks, and he had to be very, very careful to free his boat. Inch by inch, he freed his boat, careful not to hit any other of the underwater structures, and ended up anchoring his boat in place to keep it from hitting any sharp edges he couldn’t see in the dark that could damage the hull. Again, he would have to wait, this time for daybreak, to be able to see where he was going. If only his radar was working!

Sleep was out of question now that he sat trapped in the middle of the ocean without even the possibility to go anywhere, despite being tired; and cold, and hungry, and thirsty. But at least the existence of rocks or a reef so close under the surface could be an indicator that he was somewhere close to a shore.

And really, when the sky started to lighten, he could make out a darker shadow on the horizon that could be land!

Forcing himself to keep his calm, he lifted the anchors as soon as he could make out the shadows under water and started staking his way out of the reef, slowly and painstakingly, hoping to cross it to get to the dark shadow that could potentially be land on the horizon.

Midmorning came, and he was finally free, yet he didn’t dare hoist his mainsail for fear of gaining too much speed and hitting another hidden obstacle under water. Relying solely on his headsail for speed, he knew it would take much longer for him to reach land, but the chances that he made it without capsizing were considerably higher.

He was right to make that decision, safely navigating around sandbanks and rocks as the shadow in the distance grew bigger and turned out to be indeed land, if only an island. He would have celebrated, but quickly he had to find that despite there being an island, it wasn’t particularly big, and the chances of finding water there were slim. Slim was better than none, though, and he kept going; not like he had much of a choice.

He reached the island – a glorified name for the mostly bare rock jutting out of the vast ocean - as the afternoon sun began to bathe the world in gold, and made sure to anchor his boat in place with three anchors, to minimize the chances of it hitting a rock in the surf.

There wasn’t much time left to explore the island, but he set out straight for the center and topmost parts, and he was lucky to find a small freshwater pool where rain-water had gathered in a cleft between the rocks. It wasn’t the most hygienic source of water, but it beat dehydration any day and he filled everything that could hold a drop of liquid that he could carry.

By the time he’d restocked his boat with as much freshwater as he could possibly take with him, night was starting to fall, and he ate the last of the food he had on board. Tomorrow, he would try his luck with fishing and search in the shallower pools near the shoreline for trapped fish and other sea-life. Tonight, he would finally sleep and get the rest he hadn’t allowed himself during the past days in his quest to get to a shore before.

All the while and even until he fell asleep, Felix never noticed that every single one of his moves was being watched closely.

***

Despite being so tired the night before, Felix woke up with the first rays of sunshine and set out to find food. He was pretty successful in his quest as he found plenty of fish and clams in the shallow tidepools, as well as edible seaweed, and his mood improved considerably. Now he just had to find out where exactly he was and find his way back home from here; easy.

With the help of his calculations from two nights ago, he was able to locate the island he was stranded on on one of his more detailed maps, and calculated a course back to the bigger islands he’d set out from. He wasn’t that far away actually, it were just the ocean and wind currents that weren’t in his favour and would force him to a detour.

He decided to stay on the island for one more night, restocking his water reserves early in the morning before he left and eating his fill of fish and seafood to tide him over for as long as possible in case he couldn’t catch anything out on the water.

So far the plan, and it went well until he lifted his anchors and rounded the island to continue north on its other side, were there should be less reefs close to the surface.

He wasn’t quite out of earshot of the island when strange sounds reached his ears. It sounded like… music. Singing, to be more specific, and there was only one logic place it could be coming from: the island he’d just left.

Squinting, he searched the north-side of the pretty much barren rock for any signs of where the singing could be coming from, and eventually spotted a figure near the water, gesticulating.

Felix adjusted his sails, turning around to get a closer look, and the sound of singing became louder. The figure on the narrow beach at the base of the rocks was still gesticulating, and it took Felix a moment to realize they were… dancing. Singing and dancing without seemingly a care in the world, on a lonely rock in the middle of the ocean.

Now, Felix was pretty sure none of the fish he’d eaten were poisonous or had any hallucinogenic properties, so the only things he could blame this sight on were either something that must be dissolved in the water he’d gathered, or a sunstroke. Or, and that possibility became more and more realistic the closer he got, there was indeed someone singing and dancing on that very same godforsaken rock he’d just left.

They stopped when Felix’ boat came closer, close enough for Felix to make out the features of the young man who stood there, panting slightly from exertion, but with a content, pleasant smile lighting up his face.

Maybe Felix was indeed suffering from a sunstroke, he thought as he took in the features of the boy. He was insanely beautiful, his face so perfectly proportioned he looked like something straight from a dream, his body lithe and toned, sunbathed yet not burned and the only thing covering him a piece of dark blue cloth tied around his hips. How anyone could look so beautiful and so satisfied while sitting trapped on a rock out here, Felix couldn’t fathom.

“Hey!” He called out, and the boy’s face seemed to light up even more.

“Hey…!” He replied, and wow, Felix was taken aback by the voice that, while beautiful when he was singing, was just as mesmerizing when he talked.

“Are you stuck?” Felix heard himself asking, mentally facepalming. If he was here on this stupid tiny island that didn’t even deserve that name, of course he must be stuck; unless he had a boat tied up somewhere that Felix couldn’t see.

“Stuck?” The boy asked, laughing quietly, and Felix gasped at the sound. Forget his singing or talking voice; his laugh was the sound Felix wouldn’t mind hearing for the rest of his life! “No, I’m not.”

Felix was taken aback by that answer.

“You’re not? So, you have a boat somewhere, then?”

The boy shook his head, and Felix was confused.

“You don’t? Then… How are you not stuck?”

The boy shrugged.

“I like it here… I have the whole island to myself…”

Felix stopped the advancement of his boat before it got too close to the rocks of the island.

“You… You live here?”

The boy nodded. Felix couldn’t wrap his mind around it; there wasn’t much on this island, he knew that for a fact. He’d found no house, no shed, not even a cave where someone could make their home in! Never mind that there was no proper freshwater source, and aside from what the sea gave, no food.

“O-ok… That’s… odd, but ok. So, you’re sure you are not stuck, and you want to stay here, did I get this right? Alone, on this… rather tiny island…”

The boy nodded again, flashing Felix a blinding smile that sent his head spinning, but he gathered his bearings quickly as he pinched his leg to focus.

“Alright then. So, I suppose you won’t want a ride back to the mainland…”

“No, thank you. That’s very kind of you, dear sailor, but I quite like the solitude of my island…”

Felix swallowed thickly as the lilt in the boy’s voice made his head spin again, the sight he made there on the shore, his body glistening , dark hair ruffled by the wind looking almost blue in the sun, and his face – oh, his face! – so lovely, with those plump, pink lips, the perfectly arched nose, dark eyes that held a million stars each… Felix slapped himself out of it mentally; what was wrong with him that all he could think about was the boy’s looks when they were in the middle of having a conversation?! Even if the conversation wasn’t exactly normal, but that was of no consequence; he had to focus.

“Ok, I, uh… You do have enough supplies to last you, then? Well, I suppose you must. I’m sure you know what you’re doing. So, if you don’t need any help, I guess I’ll just… Well, I’ll be on my way, then. Have a, uh, nice life, I guess…”

However beautiful the boy was, he was odd, and he made Felix nervous. So, when the boy confirmed he didn’t need anything, he determinedly turned his boat around and focused completely on what it took to sail against the wind in an attempt to not think about the perfect-looking boy with the rather odd living preferences.

***

Hyunjin stared after the quickly retreating boat in awe. Now that, that had been a first! For centuries now he was living on this island, with only one purpose: lead the corrupted souls that passed his home to their eternal demise. And never, not even once, had any soul been able to resist his charms.

He was left wondering if he should have tried harder, but then again he had done everything exactly like he’d learned, and exactly like it had worked without fail every single time before: work the glamour into showing his target the form they desired most and play the innocent, lonely, vulnerable part. He never had to do more than that to lure sailors from all ages, seasoned captains and young adventurers, poor fishermen and rich leisure travelers, into his trap, independent of whether the form his glamour took for them was male or female. As soon as he led them to believe he was an easy target, all of them would cast all manners aside and approach him with only the most rotten intent, blinded by their lust and the certainty of impunity.

Of course, that couldn’t be farther from the truth, for as soon as they lay hand on Hyunjin, their life was over; never once since Hyunjin had taken on this purpose had anyone who’d so much as breathed on him escaped with their life, and their souls rotted forevermore in bitter damnation while their bodies served the ultimate purpose of feeding the ocean-life.

Intrigued, incredulous, and with a slightly bruised ego, Hyunjin lifted the glamour and jumped in the water, his body adjusting to the new environment instantly as he followed the boat disappearing in the distance.

It didn’t take him long before he caught up and followed the vessel for the two days it took until it reached its port. Sufficiently hidden between other boats and ships, Hyunjin followed the activity of the sailor, but was disappointed to find he left quickly. Still, he decided to wait for his return, deciding to carry out his mission of weeding out as many corrupted souls as possible directly by the mainland’s shore; there were more potential targets here, anyway.

His wait was rewarded when after a few days, the sailor he’d been waiting for returned, starting to ready his boat. For a day, he was busy with preparations, and then he set out; not for the open sea, but a small island – little more than the rock Hyunjin had first lured him to – still within sight of the shoreline, although barely.

Hyunjin followed him, climbing out of the water discreetly as he watched him.

The sailor didn’t do anything too curious, merely anchoring his boat close enough to the only semblance of a beach the rock had to get on land, found a quiet spot out of reach of the waves, and settled down to read.

It had been centuries since Hyunjin had last touched a book, and even when he’d still been human, he’d never learned how to read. The title of the book, which he could spy from where he was watching the sailor, remained a mystery to him, but the cover was decorated by an image that told him plenty about the contents of the book: a mere-woman and a sea-serpent, forming a circle around the title of the book.

Hyunjin grinned as he realized he had at least yet to leave the sailor’s thoughts, and feeling stupid and brave at the same time, as well as uncharacteristically adventurous and curious, he decided to reveal himself to the sailor; without glamour, this time.

***

Felix jumped when the sound of rocks shifting and falling reached his ears, the crunching sounding as if someone was walking on them. Hastily, he looked up from his book to indeed find someone standing not too far away from him. It took him a moment, for he thought the lights must be playing tricks on his eyes, before he recognized the person.

“You!” he shouted in surprise, and the boy’s eyebrows shot up.

“Me?” He asked, and Felix was pleasantly surprised to hear the boy’s voice again; and even more so that this time, it came without the fuzziness it had left in his brain the time before.

“You. You’re the one from that godforsaken rock I stranded on last week! The one who claimed to live there.”

“Ah…. Yes, indeed. That would be me…” The boy confirmed with a grin that didn’t look entirely genuine.

“You followed me, didn’t you?”

The boy’s smile turned more genuine, and also more evil.

“I did, indeed.”

“What is it that you’re trying to do?” Felix asked – demanded, really – and the boy tilted his head, eyes sparkling.

“Haven’t you figured that out yet?” He asked, nodding at the book in Felix’ hands.

“Not quite, but I have a theory. You’re a siren, aren’t you?”

The boy’s grin widened impossibly, and Felix gasped lightly at the sight of the lightly serrated but undoubtedly razor-sharp teeth.

“Oooh, you’re a smart one, aren’t you?! Yes, I’m a siren! And do you know what sirens do?”

Felix could hear the taunting threat in the boy’s – siren’s – voice, but strangely enough, it left him unaffected.

“I do… At least I think I do, if what I’ve been reading is correct. You lure in and drown – or kill in another way – those with corrupted souls; usually the ones whose souls are corrupted in the same way your own was before you got cursed to this life.”

The boy gasped, taking a stumbling step back, and Felix had a feeling he hadn’t expected him to know that little tidbit. He caught himself quickly, though.

“Ohooo! Someone’s done their research! Bravo!” He clapped, nodding in mock acknowledgement, but it left Felix unaffected. In fact, his bluster made him curious.

“So, what was your sin that makes you come after me with such vigor? You left someone who needed help behind on an island without helping them?” Felix guessed, and the boy’s face closed off, gaze becoming piercing.

“None of your business!” He spat, but Felix shrugged.

“Oh, come on; since you are already here and my demise looks pretty imminent, surely you can tell me?”

The siren shook his head, though.

“As much as it irks me, your demise is nowhere near; at least not by my hands. Which is exactly why I’m here! I want to know: _how?!”_

Felix blinked in surprise.

“How? How what? What have I done?”

The siren huffed.

“How is it possible that you escaped my lure? How were you not affected? How is your soul so pure that you could resist me?!”

Felix’ eyes widened, and then he laughed.

“Oh! Don’t get me wrong, Mr Siren Sir, you’re quite attractive, alright, but you’re really not all that!”

The siren gaped at him, then narrowed his eyes and for a moment the air in front of him seemed to shimmer as if over a very hot surface, but that was it.

“How about now?” He asked with a dazzling smile, and his tone was _so_ sweet, so luring… Honestly, way too much so; Felix feared he’d get a caries if he kept listening to it, along with a headache.

“Slightly better, especially without the sharp teeth and obviously murderous look in your eyes, but I’d really appreciate it if you laid off the brain-fuzz-tone; it’s giving me a headache.” He answered honestly, and with a sharp crackle the spell broke, and the guise disappeared.

“That’s it?! That’s all the difference you saw?!” The boy’s voice sounded almost hysteric, but Felix didn’t understand what was wrong.

“Uh, yes? What, was I supposed to see something else?”

The bewildered look in the siren’s eyes as he stared at him changed, and suddenly, it looked almost fearful before he turned around and started running, hurling himself off the nearest edge and into the sea below. A moment later, Felix saw the flash of a powerful fin break the surface before the shimmery shadow attached to it disappeared in the dark depths of the ocean.

***

Hyunjin swam as if the devil himself was after him, heading back to the island far out in the ocean that he had made his home on many centuries ago. As long as he was swimming, focusing on the powerful strokes of his fin, dodging ships and schools of fish and other marine creatures and trying to maintain his course, he hoped he wouldn’t have to think. All too soon, he reached his home, though, and as he hoisted himself into the underwater cave he called his lair, he was forced to acknowledge what he’d just learned.

That sailor wasn’t only an untainted soul when it came to the sin Hyunjin particularly punished, but he could see him. He could see through his glamour; or rather, he saw him for who he was. No, that wasn’t right, either… It was more like… Even when Hyunjin used his glamour to show the form that would be most alluring to this particular sailor, he would only see Hyunjin; minus serrated teeth and murderous glint in his eyes, which, yeah, he could totally understand.

“This can’t be happening to me…” Hyunjin breathed, throwing himself onto the sandy beach in the cave and staring up at the rocks above him. “How is that possible?”

What was worse, the sailor was immune to his charm-speak, dismissing it as a ‘brain-fuzz-tone’ that gave him headaches. He was immune to him and all his charms, and that- that really pissed Hyunjin off. What a bloody goody-two-shoes, with his oh-so-perfectly pure soul! No human should be so uncorrupted and perfect! It was impossible! Humans were vile creatures who gave in to their deepest, hidden desires without hesitation if made to believe they could get away with it unpunished! Hyunjin should know; not only had he been one of them, back in the day, but he’d met more than his fair share of them over the centuries. So, who did this sailor think he was, to resist like that?!

He let out a frustrated yell, punching the sand next to him fruitlessly in rage.

“You can’t be perfect, sailor! I will find out what your sin is, and I will make sure you suffer while I kill you for it! And for all eternity from then on!”

***

Felix screamed, high pitched and strident but short, when he saw the head peeking over the gunwale of his boat.

“You again! You nearly gave me a heart attack, what the fuck! Can’t you, like, knock or something before you come up and scare the living daylights out of me?!”

The siren peeking into his boat didn’t look amused.

“What is your sin?”

“Excuse me?” Felix frowned, not getting what it was the siren wanted to know.

“I want to know what your sin is. Humans can’t be perfect, there must have sinned before. Have you ever killed someone?”

Felix gaped at the siren.

“What?! Of course not! What the fuck?!”

“Well, that would have been too easy, anyway. Have you ever forced yourself on someone?”

“No! Gross!” Felix screeched, but the siren continued undeterred.

“Disgustingly righteous. Cheated on someone?” Again, Felix shook his head, bewildered.

“No… Why would I do that?!”

“What about stealing, have you stolen before?”

“You mean other than cookies from my grandma’s cookie jar?”

The siren groaned, rolling his eyes.

“Yes, other than that…!”

Felix shook his head.

“No.”

“Lied?”

“Just about my dog eating my homework in school.”

“Inconsequential. Hmm… Gluttony! Is that something you do?”

“Not really… But I do like eating too much ice cream way too late at night even when I’m not hungry… You know, in front of the TV when there’s a really good movie, I completely forget that I’m even eating over it, and before I know it, the tub is empty…”

“I do, in fact, not know what you’re talking about, but that’s also inconsequential. Oh, envy! Have you ever, hmm, been a homewrecker?”

Felix huffed, indignant.

“Excuse me?! No! Just because I can’t get a boyfriend doesn’t mean I’m going to destroy what others have!”

The siren groaned, impatient and very frustrated.

“You are _so_ annoying! It pisses me off that _that_ isn’t a sin!”

Felix gaped at him.

“Excuse me, what?! You come onto my boat, asking me all those invasive questions, and then complain that I’m annoying? If I’m so annoying, go look for someone else to pester!”

That sobered the siren up, but that didn’t mean they liked the call-out.

“I can’t. I need to find out what your weakness is, what you would sin for, and use it against you. There is no way your soul is pure!”

Felix huffed.

“Oh, how lovely of you. Has anyone ever told you that you are really unnecessarily mean? What have I ever done to you for you to want to do that to me? Is it because I landed on your island without your permission? I’m sorry for trespassing; I didn’t know it was your home! But if you want to, I’ll make it up to you, somehow!”

The siren looked taken aback for a moment, then narrowed his eyes at Felix.

“I want you to tell me what you’ve done to break the laws; and what it would take to make you break the laws.”

Felix sighed, leaning against the gunwale on the opposite side of the boat from the siren.

“Really? Well… I left my car in the no-parking zone in front of my house’s gate to grab my packed lunch that I’d forgotten on the table last week; that’s against the law. Happy?”

The siren was, in fact, not happy, as he proceeded to hit his head against the hull of Felix’ boat.

“Hey, what are you doing?! Stop! You’ll get hurt!” Felix rushed over to his side, putting his hand between the siren’s head and the boat to keep him from hitting the hard surface again. The siren glared up at him.

“One day. One day, I will find out what it takes to corrupt your soul, too. You are _not_ perfect, human! You can’t be!”

Felix shrugged with a sigh, retracting his hand into the boat again.

“I never claimed I was; I’m well aware of my shortcomings. And the name is Felix, by the way.”

The siren’s eyes narrowed.

“Felix, whatever. I will corrupt you; just you wait. And then I will see to it that you get the punishment you deserve! I have never failed, not once, and I don’t plan on starting now!”

Felix nodded tiredly, sitting down on the seat behind him.

“Fine… But, has it ever crossed your mind that maybe your job isn’t to corrupt human souls, but merely to weed out those that are already corrupted, to make the world a better place? At least that’s what the books say. Shouldn’t it make you happy when you see that after all those years of work, it’s starting to show success?”

The siren hissed angrily, baring serrated teeth, and Felix’ heart jumped with sudden fear.

“Don’t tell me what my job is, human!”

With a violent splash and a hit of his tail against the hull that rocked the whole boat, the siren disappeared in the depths.

***

The audacity!

Hyunjin was fuming as he propelled himself to the bottom of the ocean to wreak havoc around some inactive volcanic structures that no one would miss if he destroyed.

How dare that human tell him what his job was supposed to be! As if he didn’t know it! As if he hadn’t spent centuries on it already! As if he didn’t know exactly what he needed to do, day in and day out, for the rest of his life!

Stupid, presumptuous human who thought he could tell him what it was he had to do! Oh, how he wished to strangle him, to rip his throat out, to drag him to the bottom of the ocean to let him rot! But he couldn’t touch him, couldn’t lay a single harmful finger on him without getting burned by his stupidly pure soul that shone so bright he could barely _look_ at the human without going blind! It seriously pissed him off how beautiful the sight was, and that he couldn’t forget it. That he could hardly think of anything else and felt the need to go back to him time and time again. It had reached a point where he could even tell the exact moment the human stepped onto his boat and handed his fate over to the ocean! He _hated_ it!

And yet, he couldn’t resist when he next felt him step onto his boat, waiting eagerly to figure out his route and follow him. He stayed under water, hidden from sight at first, observing him in secret. The human was stupidly beautiful with his wind-tousled, light blonde hair framing his face, his sun-kissed skin dotted with a just-perfect amount of stars, soft yet toned body maneuvering the sloop with ease and practiced movements as if it was his sole purpose in life.

Hyunjin couldn’t stand it any longer and broke through the surface, hoisting himself up far enough to cross his arms atop the gunwale and watch the human from there.

“You again. Still haven’t learned to announce yourself, I see. We’ll get there, I’m sure, though…”

The human wasn’t even surprised to see Hyunjin this time.

“Still not afraid of me dragging you under, I see. We’ll get there, I’m sure, though…” Hyunjin mocked, and to his surprise, the human laughed. What a stupidly nice sound; he hated it!

“I’ve figured if my time to be drowned by you had come, you wouldn’t waste time to let me know. Considering I’m still standing on deck and not on my way to the bottom of the ocean, I’m fairly positive that my time hasn’t come yet; or am I wrong?”

Hyunjin huffed.

“You are, unfortunately, not wrong; as much as it pisses me off.”

The human sighed, tying the sails in place and sitting down.

“Why does it get you so heated that you can’t find a reason to kill me? What is it that makes you hate me so much?”

He sounded almost sad about it, and Hyunjin hated how it made him feel almost bad for him. He quickly stomped down on that feeling, though, but still answered the human.

“Humans are evil, vile creatures who take advantage of each other, they are corrupt and destroy themselves and each other and deserve to be punished for it!”

The human shook his head sadly.

“That is such a warped world-view… There are so, so many humans who are none of that… Who are good and kind and loving and would never harm a single soul. Who help each other where they can, who bring joy and happiness to everyone around them, who do good just for the sake of doing it…”

Hyunjin huffed, rolling his eyes at the human’s naivete.

“We must be talking about a different species, then. Of all the humans I have encountered over the centuries, there wasn’t a single one among them without a tainted soul; and if they weren’t tainted before, none of them could ever resist my lure. Not one!”

The human looked at him with a profound sadness in his eyes.

“I am so sorry that is all you’ve found in your life… You must really be an unlucky one… I wish you could see what true goodness of heart looks like…”

Hyunjin scoffed, incredulous.

“I can’t see something that doesn’t exist!” he refuted, but deep down inside, he had to admit – very begrudgingly – that he was most likely looking straight at it. The human shook his head at his caustic reply, though.

“It does exist; maybe you are just too jaded to see it by now… But weren’t you once human, too?”

Hyunjin flinched, since he hated thinking about that.

“I was, and I was no better than the rest of the human scum; which is why I’m here like this, to this day.”

The human looked at him with sympathy.

“This is your punishment, isn’t it… It seems quite harsh to me… What was it that you did, if you don’t mind me asking?”

Hyunjin did mind him asking, very much so, but still found himself replying.

“What do you think, since I tried to lure you in to come to me? I took advantage of someone, kissed her even though I knew she didn’t want me to. Paid hard for it, since she shoved me off the castle battlements into the sea and ended my life.”

The human grimaced.

“Wow… While what you did was definitely not ok, one would think that you losing your life over it would be too harsh already… Turning you into a siren over it seems a bit of an overkill, if you ask me…”

Hyunjin didn’t know why he felt the urge to continue explaining himself.

“Of course, that wasn’t why I was turned! I was turned because I begged the deities to restore my life at least long enough so I could go back and get my revenge! I wanted to kill her for ending my life! They begged to differ, though, and thought I needed to be taught a lesson.”

Whatever he expected the human’s reaction to be, it surely wasn’t a slow, understanding nod.

“That makes sense… How long ago was that?”

“Almost two thousand years…”

The human’s eyes widened in surprise.

“What? That long?! Wow, _that’s_ exaggerated! Surely you must have learned your lesson a long time ago, no?”

Hyunjin was seething.

“Don’t you dare patronize me! Of course, I have! Centuries of having gross, lecherous men coming after me against my will have taught me plenty; at least I was not just _allowed_ to kill them for it the second they touched me, but _supposed_ to!”

The human nodded, seemingly content.

“See, that’s what I mean. That’s why I think it should be time that you are forgiven for your past sins. Or do you perhaps not want to be forgiven and continue on like this forever?”

Hyunjin found himself sighing deeply, defeat crashing into him as he rested his chin on his crossed arms and stared unseeingly at the deck of the boat, and before he knew it he was spilling his most reserved thoughts to the human.

“You have no idea how tired I am of this. I’m tired of being bound to the waters that killed me, tired of being reminded day in and day out of what I did to the one I supposedly loved… Tired of being alone with the sea, unless I’m accosted by a corrupted soul who has no interest in _me_ but only the mirage of the body the glamour suggests to them. Tired of seeing all the evil and the disgust that comes with seeing it. Tired… so very tired…”

Silence settled over them, only interrupted by the gentle slapping of the waves against the hull of the sloop. A light creaking of the mast had Hyunjin look up again with a sigh, ready to pull himself together, but what he saw brought his thoughts to a screeching halt. The human… was crying! Tears were flowing steadily down his face, and he looked so heartbroken, it caused Hyunjin’s own, cold heart to clench painfully.

“Felix?! What’s wrong? Why are you crying?!” He asked frantically, shocked by the sight and already halfway in the process of hoisting himself fully onto the boat when the human’s gaze snapped up to him, and he quickly wiped at his tears.

“N-nothing-… actually, no; not nothing! You don’t deserve to be punished anymore! It’s not fair! You’ve suffered more than enough!”

Hyunjin gaped at him, incredulous. Why would-… it made no sense. The human was crying _for him?!_ Why would he?!

“I don’t know what to do to help you, but I want to help you feel better. If there is anything I can do for you, anything that would make this easier for you, anything that would bring you comfort, let me know. I promise I’ll do my best, for as long as I can!” The human proclaimed, full of conviction and with a burning sincerity that managed to warm even Hyunjin’s cold heart.

Hyunjin swallowed thickly, confused and uncharacteristically moved, feeling very out of his depth. Those feelings scared him.

“Why would you want to do that…?” He whispered, incredulous, as the human dried the last of his tears.

“Because someone should. It’s the right thing to do.”

Hyunjin could only shake his head, though.

“But I’m… My purpose is to corrupt and kill; I’m not someone who deserves forgiveness and comfort.”

The human shook his head with determination.

“You do. You were given that purpose to learn and make up for what you’ve done. You’ve learned and more than made up for your mistakes. If those you killed were corrupted enough to deserve to die, the world is a better place without them, and you made this world that better place. You deserve to find your peace in whatever way suits you best. But that is not my decision to make, unfortunately; I can, however, try to make your life a little better, a little easier, a little brighter. If you tell me how.”

Hyunjin stared at him for a long time, his thoughts racing in unfamiliar ways while his heart beat with warmth in his chest for the first time in almost two thousand years. It was scary, this feeling, and it choked Hyunjin. It also made him come to a sudden realization, and once he had, he couldn’t stand to stay in the human’s presence any longer.

“You shouldn’t bother with me, Felix… You should… You should keep your distance. I’ll… I’ll stop bothering you; you are too pure. You are a real, pure soul, and I- I’m scared of tainting you, now. I can see it now, and I won’t try anymore. Goodbye, Felix…”

He started to let go of the railing on the gunwale, but Felix darted after him.

“Wait!” He shouted, just before Hyunjin’s head would have dipped under the surface.

“Wait. Before you go: can I know your name? So, I have at least something to remember you by? It’s only fair, since you remembered mine…”

It felt like a punch to Hyunjin’s gut when he realized that the human was right, he did indeed remember his name.

“Hyunjin.” He answered while his head was still reeling from the realization that he did know the human’s – Felix’ – name, and then he promptly dove under and tried to put as much distance as possible between himself and the boat.

***

As much as Hyunjin wanted to keep his distance from Felix, he couldn’t. He didn’t go looking for him anymore, but he didn’t have to. Felix was always with him, always on his mind, in his thoughts; in the warm beating of his supposedly cold heart.

He felt it in his bones like the call of a siren – and the irony wasn’t lost to him there – whenever Felix stepped onto his boat and set out to the sea. He had to leave the water and wander as far onto land as he could on his tiny island to resist the pull to swim to wherever Felix was, and still it was sheer torture for him to stay away.

Of course, that method couldn’t work forever, and soon enough – too soon – he was caught by surprise by Felix stepping foot into his realm while he was far, far away from his semblance of a haven. To make matters worse, he could tell there was a storm brewing, but clearly Felix must not have realized; and if he set out to sea in his small sloop, and got caught in that storm…

Hyunjin couldn’t bear the thought and set out to find Felix to warn him. It wasn’t hard at all for him, anyway, and Felix had yet to distance himself out of view from the coast when Hyunjin pulled himself up onto the gunwale of the boat.

“Hyunjin!” Felix shouted, delighted, and Hyunjin’s heart warmed another few degrees.

“You remembered…” Hyunjin found himself whispering, incredulity mixing in his voice.

“Of course, I did! I’ve missed you; I didn’t think you would come see me again.”

Hyunjin shook his head.

“I wasn’t planning to… Why would you miss me?”

“I’ve become kind of used to seeing you… And your little obsession with wanting to kill me aside, you grew on me. I was hoping to see you again.”

Hyunjin swallowed thickly shaking his head. He was only here to warn Felix of the impending storm, he reminded himself.

“Felix, you have to turn back around and go on land.”

Felix blinked, confused.

“Why? I only just set out…?”

“There is a storm coming.” Hyunjin warned, and Felix’ eyes widened.

“What? But there was nothing on the weather warnings… It said clear skies with a light south-south-east breeze…”

Hyunjin shook his head, though.

“Trust me. There is a storm coming. The wind will turn and bring a heavy thunderstorm with it. You shouldn’t be out on the sea for that. You barely survived the last storm that caught you by surprise.”

It was Felix’ turn to swallow thickly.

“You knew about that?”

Hyunjin shrugged.

“I knew about the storm, and a few days later, a severely dehydrated and starving Felix stumbles onto my island. It’s not that hard to piece together!”

For some reason, Felix smiled, happy.

“What?” Hyunjin could only ask, confused.

“You remembered, too. My name.”

Hyunjin felt warmth creep onto his face, and quickly willed it away. He hadn’t blushed in almost twenty centuries; he wouldn’t start again now!

“Of course, I did! Now turn around and go back home! I don’t want you to die out here!”

Felix’ eyebrows shot up, but he started to set his sails around and turn the rudder.

“You know, if this means you’re actually going to drop the whole wanting to see me dead thing, I might really start to like you… Careful there!”

There was no way for Hyunjin to stop the warmth from spreading to his face this time.

“Shut up, human…!” He could only mutter, letting go of the railing and sinking back into the waters.

“Wait, Hyunjin! Don’t go!” Felix shouted after him, but Hyunjin stayed under water. He didn’t go away, though, sticking around to see if Felix would heed his warning and go back to shore.

He did try, he found, but the wind started to turn already and was slowing Felix’ progress. Exasperated, Hyunjin decided to take matters into his own hands and started pushing the sloop himself, steadily gaining speed as he pushed him towards land. When they were close enough, he let go, only to find Felix looking down into the water and right at him. He couldn’t resist coming to the surface.

“I guess this is a sign that you really don’t want to kill me anymore. Just know that you’ve done it now; I really like you.”

Hyunjin rolled his eyes at that.

“Just make sure you get home safely.”

***

Hyunjin didn’t stay gone for long after that. The next time Felix set sail, he was there in no time, hanging off the side of his boat.

“Morning, Hyunjin. Wanna hop on?” Felix greeted him, adjusting his sails. Hyunjin’s eyebrows shot up.

“You’re inviting me onto your boat?”

Felix shrugged.

“Yeah, sure. Why, is that something I’m not supposed to do?”

“Inviting a creature whose purpose is to drown sailors onto your sailing boat when you’re a sailor doesn’t sound like the smartest idea to me, no…” Hyunjin exposed, while he was already hoisting himself up and trading the long half serpentine, half fish tail for a pair of long legs as he brought his lower body on deck.

“And here I thought we were past the part where you wanted to drown me… Uh, do you want a towel, or…?” He offered, and Hyunjin tilted his head curiously at Felix, who just shrugged.

“Whatever, I just figured that you might want to dry off since it’s quite chilly up here in the wind, but… Can you even feel cold, when you are a sea creature?”

Hyunjin accepted the towel, even though he wasn’t entirely sure why.

“I can, but it doesn’t bother me. I don’t need to be warm.” Still, he appreciated the gesture; very much so. Feeling warm was nice, and he draped the towel around himself as he sat down.

“I was about to eat breakfast; do you want some? Wait, what is it that you eat, actually?”

Hyunjin smirked at him.

“Souls and drowned sailors, remember?”

Felix rolled his eyes.

“Sorry, I’m all out of those in my fridge. And I’d give you a piece of my soul, but I forgot the soul-can-opener.”

Hyunjin sobered despite being well aware Felix was only joking.

“Don’t joke about that, Felix. Your soul is so beautiful and pure, you should never let anyone come close enough to hurt or taint it.”

Felix hummed placatingly.

“Sorry, I didn’t know that was a sore spot. Anyway; would a croissant do instead of a drowned sailor? You can have a sausage afterwards to satiate the need for something more fleshy; though it’s already cooked, so I don’t know if it really comes close…”

Hyunjin stared at Felix with a mix of bewilderment and awe.

“You’re really one of a kind, Felix…”

Felix flashed him a blinding smile, and warmth spread all throughout Hyunjin, from his heart to the tips of his fingers and toes. He didn’t let it show, though, to which extent Felix affected him, and accepted the plate Felix was preparing for him instead.

They ate in silence at first, Hyunjin relishing the first time he got to eat real, human food – and the good kind, too – for the first time since he’d died.

“You like it?” Felix eventually asked, and Hyunjin nodded enthusiastically. “You can have more; I brought plenty. I was hoping you’d show up, you know…” Felix admitted, blushing slightly under his freckles, and it knocked the wind out of Hyunjin’s chest. He couldn’t find an answer to that, but accepted it gladly when Felix refilled his plate.

“What do you do, when you are on land?” He eventually asked, too curious about the adorable human; he wanted to know more about him, wanted to know everything about him; not just his sins. Actually, he was pretty sure he wouldn’t even care about his sins anymore if he eventually found out about them.

Felix’ face lit up at that question.

“I’m a kindergarten teacher.”

That was something Hyunjin had never heard of, and his confusion must have shown on his face, for Felix started explaining it.

“I look after the children of other people while they are at work and don’t have time for them. I play with them, draw with them, help them with their lunch boxes, put them down for nap times, make sure they don’t get hurt and console them when they do get hurt somehow, then play with them again. Day in and day out, except on weekends. Then I drive down to the coast, take my boat and come out here, when the weather is good.”

Hyunjin looked at Felix as if he’d hung the stars in the sky.

“That is really what you do? That is a real occupation nowadays? You just play with little kids, all the time?”

Felix laughed softly.

“Yes. Well, it is still quite tiring, to look after fifteen little rascals at a time, but essentially… Yes. I play with little kids all the time.”

Hyunjin shook his head.

“Why is that just so… you. No wonder your soul is as pure as a child’s!”

“Why, because I spend all my time surrounded by children?”

“Yes! No… Maybe it’s actually because your soul is so pure that you spend so much time with those whose soul is as pure as yours… That would make sense.”

Felix thought about it for a while, then decided to accept it.

“What did you use to do, before you became a siren?”

Before he became a siren. Not before he died, before he was cursed. He was asking him as if he had simply decided to switch his jobs.

“I was a squire, training to become a knight…”

Felix hummed, tilting his head to look at Hyunjin with slightly squinted eyes.

“Hmm, really? That’s not something I would have guessed. You look… almost too soft for a knight…”

Hyunjin gasped, offended.

“Excuse me? I’ll have you know I was one of the best squires out there, and about to become one of the youngest knights, ever!”

Felix only giggled at Hyunjin’s outburst.

“Oh, really? Sir Hyunjin, hm? I would have taken you as more of a gardener… Or a pastry baker. Maybe a tailor, too…”

Hyunjin gaped at him for a moment, then snapped his mouth shut.

“Why?” He asked, and Felix shrugged.

“I don’t know… You seem like the person for something like that. Like someone who creates something that is both beautiful and useful. I just can’t see you as some brute who runs around clad in metal and pokes others with pointy sticks for the heck of it.”

Hyunjin actually laughed at that.

“Really? Pointy sticks! Those are called swords! Or pikes! Or spears!”

Felix shrugged.

“I know what they are called; are you going to deny they are pointy sticks, though?”

Hyunjin opened his mouth to protest, but thought better of it.

“Pointy sticks… I can’t believe you…!”

They kept talking for hours, before realizing it was starting to get late in the afternoon. Then, Hyunjin jumped off the boat, pushing it almost all the way back to the port to make sure Felix made it home before nightfall. Felix returned to the sea the next day, though, and Hyunjin joined him again. And the same happened the next weekend, and the next, and the next.

They talked about everything and nothing, from their favourite constellations to what life on land was like now and back when Hyunjin had still been human, from how to fold origami cranes to how to read the fortune in the crashing of the waves, from Felix’ dream to one day own a house with a garden and a puppy, to what Hyunjin would want to do if he were to ever live on land again.

His time spent with Felix became Hyunjin’s only motivation to make it through the days until he would see him again, and he would be there by his side from the moment he could safely climb on board without any other humans seeing him, to the moment Felix navigated his sloop into the harbor at the end of the day.

“Hyunjin… If you could, would you want to be human again?” Felix asked him one day while they were laying side by side on deck of Felix’ sloop, and Hyunjin inhaled sharply. It wasn’t like he hadn’t thought about it before, especially now that he knew Felix; and especially now that his body felt warm again and never fully cooled down again between the times he spent with Felix.

“I don’t know… Maybe, yes. If it meant I could spend more time with you, yes. But…” He answered, but trailed off.

“But…?” Felix prompted, and Hyunjin sighed.

“I’m scared. Not all humans are like you. Most are corrupted souls, evil to their core if given the chance to be. I see enough of those out here; on land, it would be overwhelming…”

Felix hummed in understanding.

“But what if you could be fully human again… Without any of your powers; without being able to see our souls. Would you want that?”

Hyunjin thought about it long and hard.

“It would mean I wouldn’t be able to see your soul, too…”

“Yes. You wouldn’t. But you already know what it looks like.”

That was true.

“Maybe…” Hyunjin conceded. “But I also already know what the other humans’ souls look like. And I don’t like it. I don’t think I’d ever be able to trust other humans around me.”

“That’s valid…” Felix agreed, and they lay in silence for a while, until Felix shifted his hand on the deck and let it brush against Hyunjin’s.

“It would be nice, though, to see you more often… Spend more time with you. I miss you all week long when I’m on land…”

Hyunjin’s breath caught in his chest, his heart beating wildly and almost hot at the sensation of Felix’ fingers against his own. Felix had touched him! And still… He searched and searched within him, but no; despite Felix having touched him, having laid hand on him, he couldn’t harm him if he wanted to. Not that he wanted to, but it was still forbidden.

“I miss you, too… And maybe… Just maybe… No, actually, I think I would do it. To be with you, I would risk living among humans. I can do without my powers, and I’m so over living on that forsaken rock, and in this damp hell. If I never had to see a soul again, even if that included yours… I’d give that up in a heartbeat.” Hyunjin eventually concluded, then held his breath, as if he was gathering courage to say something else.

“Felix… Can I hold your hand?”

Next to him, Felix smiled up at the clear, blue sky.

“I thought you’d never ask. Yes, you can.”

He felt inexplicably giddy when Hyunjin interlaced their fingers, chilly as they still were.

***

Felix couldn’t come out to the sea the next weekend, since it was raining heavily. And neither the next, since it was his mother’s birthday. The one after that, he was sick, and it took the combined force of his parents, sisters, and grandparents to get him to stay home and rest; otherwise, he would have gone and sailed out to be with Hyunjin, cold be damned!

As soon as the fourth weekend rolled around, though, he was out of the house by four in the morning, and setting sail with the first rays of the sun.

He was nervous, heart beating with a mix of anticipation and fear as he waited for Hyunjin to appear. Hyunjin didn’t come, though.

“Hyunjinnie, where are you… I’m so sorry I couldn’t come… I didn’t know it would be like that…” He whined quietly to himself, letting his hand drag through the waves while he waited.

“I hope nothing happened to you… Is that a thing that is possible? Could you have gotten caught in a net and found out by humans? Or what if your cave caved in? Hyunjinnie, please be alright…! I couldn’t stand the thought of you getting hurt!” He talked to himself, getting antsy the more he thought about the possibility that something could have happened to Hyunjin.

“It takes more than some dipshit fishermen’s nets to catch me… Yeh have so little faith…!” A voice quipped from the other side of the boat, and Felix shrieked, whipping around and hitting Hyunjin on the arm as he was startled.

“Hey! Where did you come from all of a sudden?!” Felix demanded, and Hyunjin rose a confused eyebrow, gesticulating at the water around them.

“Uh… Down there? What’s with you hitting me? Actually, what the…! You hit me, but I could still not drown you if I wanted to? What the fuckery?!”

Felix huffed, crossing his arms.

“I didn’t mean to hit you!”

“But you still did!”

“I never had the intention to hurt you!”

“But you still-… actually, you didn’t. But you could have!”

“Really? Do you really want to drown me now? Because I slapped your arm? Is that going to be the reason my soul starts rotting?”

Hyunjin couldn’t keep up the front anymore, too happy to finally see Felix again.

“No, I don’t want to drown you. And your soul is as pure as ever. You could probably run me through with your staking pole, and I would rather thank you than want to drown you.”

Felix huffed, uncrossing his arms.

“Ever the romantic, I see…”

Hyunjin bowed courteously, then moved to get the towel Felix had already laid out for him to dry off.

“I missed you.” He stated, and Felix lowered his head in shame.

“I missed you, too. I’m sorry I couldn’t come…” And he explained his reasons. After asking for permission, Hyunjin took Felix’ hand in his.

“It’s ok, Felix. I’d rather you don’t come out during a storm, or when you’re sick. And I can’t fault you for attending your mother’s birthday.”

Felix smiled adoringly up at Hyunjin.

“You being so understanding almost makes me feel worse. I wish I could have had a way to talk to you, at least, even if I couldn’t be with you. At least to let you know why I couldn’t come, so you wouldn’t wait in vain…”

Hyunjin shook his head, though.

“All that matters to me is that you came back in the end. When you’ve lived for two thousand years, four weeks is nothing. And I’d gladly wait another two thousand years if I knew I’d get to meet you again by the end of them.”

Felix choked up at that, his hand trembling in Hyunjin’s.

“God damn in, Jinnie… How are you so damn perfect?!”

Hyunjin nearly choked on his breath.

“I’m far from perfect, Felix… Actually, I couldn’t be further from perfect; I’m cursed, remember?”

Felix shook his head, though.

“To me, you are perfect. Serrated teeth, cold as a fish, obsession with drowning me and all. I love you just the way you are!”

This time, Hyunjin lost his breath for real, staring at Felix as if he was a mirage.

“F-Felix…”

“What?”

Hyunjin shook his head.

“Did you… do you really mean that?”

“Mean what… that I love you?”

Hyunjin nodded once.

“Oh. Yes. Yes, I do. Have for a while now, actually.”

Hyunjin couldn’t believe it, and he couldn’t find words. All he could do was gasp for air as his eyes stung with tears for the first time in two millennia, until they finally rolled down his face.

“Oh… Oh, Jinnie… Jinnie, don’t cry, please…! Hyunjinnie, is it ok if I hug you? Can I do that?”

Hyunjin could only nod, and then Felix pulled him close, against his chest, wrapping his arms firmly around him. It took him a moment to realize Hyunjin wasn’t cold as a fish anymore, like he’d gotten used to whenever he brushed against him accidentally or held his hand. He was warm, probably even warmer than Felix, and he was shaking.

“Hyunjinnie… What’s wrong? Is it wrong of me to love you? Even if it’s wrong, I still do, though… I can’t help it. Please forgive me.”

Hyunjin shook his head, though, finally pulling back, if only just slightly.

“I don’t know if it’s wrong… It probably is. I don’t know how you can-… How you can love someone like me, but… If there’s anything to forgive, I forgive you. You forgive me, too, please, for I love you, too; and that is definitely wrong of me, because I don’t deserve to love someone like you.”

Felix gasped, then shook his head vehemently.

“Nonsense! You deserve to love and be loved! You deserve the world, Hyunjin!”

Hyunjin shook his head, fiercely in denial, but he couldn’t help himself.

“Felix, can I… Can I kiss you? Can I _please_ kiss you?”

Felix laughed lightly.

“You absolutely can, Hyunjinnie…”

And that he did. And what a kiss it was!

Hyunjin was gentle, oh so gentle, and yet he kissed with a passion and despair as if he had waited two thousand years to kiss Felix in particular. It was breathtaking and uplifting, Felix felt like he was dying and being reborn at the same time. Hyunjin held him like he was made of the most fragile of glasses, yet securely enough Felix was sure nothing in the world could tear him from his embrace.

They didn’t let go of each other all day, pretty much, exchanging kisses and gentle caresses, holding each other tightly sometimes, and simply laying next to each other the moment after.

Eventually, the sun started it’s descent, though, but Felix wasn’t ready to let go of Hyunjin just yet.

“Let’s sail home; don’t go just yet. I want to hold you a little longer, and not lose you to the waters again already. Stay on board with me…?” Felix blinked cutely up at Hyunjin, as if Hyunjin needed any extra persuasion to give Felix the entire world. And so, they sailed back to shore, even though it got dark half-way there. The sea was calm, though, and it was safe. Felix tied down the mainsail when they approached the harbor, and Hyunjin got ready to leave.

“One last kiss… Please?” The siren begged, and there was no way Felix could say no, indulging him before they would have to part.

“I don’t want to go… But I’ll see you tomorrow, right?” Hyunjin asked when they parted, and Felix nodded, pressing one last kiss to Hyunjin’s lips before stepping back and letting go of him. Hyunjin climbed onto the gunwale, looking back one last time before elegantly jumping into the water.

The boat rocked slightly, and Felix sighed; there he went, again.

He was about to focus on his sail again to maneuver into the harbor, when wild splashing from the other side of the boat caught his attention.

“Fe- Felix!” he could make out Hyunjin’s voice, but it sounded panicked, and he dashed over to see what was wrong. Hyunjin was splashing wildly in the water, uncoordinatedly flailing his arms.

“My- my pow-owers-… Gone! Ca-can’t-… Can’t swim!!” Felix couldn’t believe his eyes and ears, but he didn’t wait for an explanation, jumping into the water without a second thought and swimming over to where Hyunjin was struggling to stay afloat. He caught Hyunjin in a firm grip, holding him above water.

“Stop moving! I got you, Hyunjin; I got you. Stop struggling! You’re safe!” He instructed, but Hyunjin was having a hard time, panicked as he felt as if the water was pulling him under.

As best as he could, Felix got them back to the boat, instructing Hyunjin to hold on to the first rope he found and pulling himself on board right after to help him up as well. Hyunjin fell shivering and coughing into Felix’ arms, letting him hold him, wrap him in his big towel and warm him up.

“What- What happened? I don’t- I don’t understand…!” Hyunjin wheezed, and Felix shook his head.

“I don’t know, either. Your powers are gone?”

Hyunjin shivered violently, then looked up at Felix and his eyes widened.

“Your soul!”

Felix blinked in confusion.

“What about my soul?”

“I- I can’t see it! I can’t- It’s gone! I…” he trailed off, looking at his trembling legs. “My tail, too… I can’t transform…! And… I can’t feel the glamour…”

Felix pulled him closer again.

“Shh, it’s ok, Hyunjin… I don’t know why you can’t transform, or what happened to your powers, but we’ll figure it out, ok? You’re safe for now. We’ll figure it out.”

Hyunjin shook his head, though.

“No, I- I think I know… Felix, I think I know! I’m human, aren’t I? I turned human again? If I turned human again… I don’t want to figure it out. I don’t want to- I want to stay human. Felix, I want to stay with you! I don’t want to… Please, get me on land, get me away from the water, please-…!”

“Shh, ok, Jinnie, ok. Ok. I’ll get us on land; I’ll get us there. Sit down, stay still. I got this.”

And Felix got it. He sailed them into the harbor, secured the sloop in it’s spot, and guided Hyunjin onto land. Hyunjin trembled the whole time, all the way to the car, on the way to Felix’ home, and until they got inside. Only when the door closed behind them did he stop.

“Felix… Felix, I’m human…!”

Felix nodded slowly.

“You’re human.”

“No, you don’t understand! I-… I’m no longer cursed! I can- I can walk on land, I can come into houses, I can- I can’t swim anymore!”

Hyunjin sounded way too excited about that, and Felix decided he had to figure out something first.

“Ok… Ok, let me stop you for just a second there, Hyunjin; is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

Hyunjin gaped at him.

“Is that… It’s a good thing! Felix! This is… It’s the best thing ever! It means-… I can’t even comprehend yet what it means!”

***

It meant that Hyunjin was no longer cursed, plain and simple. He was human, he had no siren powers left. He couldn’t see souls, and couldn’t transform anymore. He couldn’t even swim anymore; not that he ever tested that out. Hyunjin was deathly afraid of the ocean, living with a constant fear that if he went too close to the sea, the lifting of his curse would be reversed.

He didn’t miss it, though. Not at all. He was perfectly happy living inland, and finding his fulfillment in life with Felix and… gardening. He didn’t trust people as a rule, and animals made him nervous – aside from the puppy he and Felix adopted; Kkami was his second true love – but plants… Plants were nice.

Still, after years - sheer endless years - Hyunjin eventually decided to accompany Felix to the sea again, against all odds and his fears, as well as Felix’ reassurances that he would never expect him to do that. Hyunjin wanted to, though, tired of seeing Felix hardly indulging in his passion for sailing anymore because of him, prioritizing his time with him over his love for the sea. He wanted Felix to be able to have both, and if that meant he had to get over his own fear… Or even if it meant he had to return to the sea forever… For Felix, he would do it.

And so, they drove down to the coast, to the harbor housing Felix’ boat. Hyunjin was a nervous wreck, but he hid it well; not that that fooled Felix. If Hyunjin was determined to do this, though, Felix would not hold him back or sabotage him. It was a visible struggle for Hyunjin to walk up to the edge of the water, but with Felix’ hand firmly in his own, he made it, letting Felix guide him onto his boat, the boat they had fallen in love on.

Just like that, as he sat down and felt the rocking of waves under the keel, the slow but steady up and down, heard the once familiar creaking of the mast, the sound of ropes stretching and the wind catching in the sail, smelled the unmistakable scent off algae and marine life, tasted the salt in the air and laid eyes on the endless expanse of the ocean opening in front of them, glittering in the sun like a million diamonds, it hit him how much he had missed this, after all. This… This had been his home for two thousand years, and even if he had grown weary of it, it was a part of himself, and would always be.

“Are you ok, love?” Felix asked him gently, seeing him spacing out.

Hyunjin nodded slowly.

“Yes… Yes, I am… Let’s go…”

Felix smiled proudly at the love of his life, readying the boat and steering them out onto the sea, to the small island not far off the shore he had met Hyunjin for the second time on. It was a quiet but not uncomfortable trip, and before long, they reached the shore of the island. Felix jumped out into the shallow water, taking the rope to secure the boat on land so it wouldn’t drift off, but soon noticed that Hyunjin wasn’t following him.

“Jinnie…? Are you not coming?”

Hyunjin stood frozen on board, still, his fingers clenched tightly around the gunwale as he stared into the water surrounding the sloop, his fears having surfaced all at once as soon as he saw himself confronted with needing to actually get into the waters that had been his home and prison for so long.

“Jinnie… You don’t have to do this… I am so proud of you for coming even this far, don’t push yourself if you feel you can’t do it…” Felix reassured him, but while Felix’ words were meant to reassure him, they made him feel even more like he had to do this, now. To prove both himself and Felix that he wasn’t… he wasn’t a coward. He could do this.

With one last deep breath, he stepped up onto the gunwale and jumped down, water splashing up around him. He lost his balance, too, toppling over and falling completely into the shallow surf. He came up spluttering, thrashing around in a desperate attempt to keep his head above water, and Felix pulled him to his feet again quickly.

“Jinnie, the water is barely knee-deep, you won’t drown…” Felix reassured him with a light chuckle as he caught his breath.

Drowning… That was one possibility that had never existed for him in all those centuries, one thing he had never had to fear. And now… He found that was one fear he was happy to have. Because if he had to fear that he was going to drown, that meant he couldn’t swim. It meant he was not a creature of the ocean, not a siren. He was human, and even being close to the sea, being in the waters of that sea, didn’t change that. He was still mortal; the curse had not returned.

And it held true the whole day, during their whole stay on the island, through playing in the surf and sailing back to their home port, and until they were back at home. Days passing changed nothing about it, nor did future ventures to the sea and trips on Felix’ boat or learning to swim again. He remained human. And as time passed, eventually, he started to believe Felix that after two thousand years, he finally deserved his happy ever after, too.


End file.
